Mich. town hires unconventional police chief

The new chief is the subject of an ongoing legal battle in a neighboring town, and admits he polices in a different manner than most

By Danielle Salisbury
Michigan Live

WATERLOO TWP., Mich. — Rob Reznick doesn’t like uniforms. He would rather be called “Rob” than “chief.”

He calls himself a “laissez faire” administrator who encourages officers to sit with homebound residents, and he can mobilize a well-funded reserve police force that mirrors or dwarfs those at far larger departments.

“I police in a different manner than a lot of people,” Reznick said this week as he sat at the café across the street from his new office, the Waterloo Township Police Department.

The township board hired Reznick on March 13. He replaces former township chief, Tom Cottrell, and his methods — the subject of some scrutiny in the Saginaw County village he also polices — already have shown to be unconventional.